They could afford it, so why not, she’d finally figured.
Marie looked down at her little Ella’s face and couldn’t believe the baby was hers, all hers. “You know,” she whispered to the little girl, “you’re already more than I could have hoped for.”
The baby clutched at her finger as Marie held her bottle, her eyes unfocused, still that newborn blue that so many babies were born with. Later, they would change into a different shade, either Mariella’s brown or Matteo’s grey, maybe some other shade in their DNA, but Marie didn’t care. They were her babies, and she loved them already.
“I’m going to be the best mom I can be to you and your brother, Ella. I promise that. You won’t ever know any of the fear or the pain I had. I will fight tooth and nail to make sure of that. Never.” She kissed the baby’s head and felt an ache that she’d thought had disappeared long ago start to ease. Tears filled her eyes, and she almost sobbed she was so overwhelmed.
She’d kept it secret for so long, how afraid she was that she’d be terrible at this, that she’d feel the same hate her mother had felt when she’d seen Marie the first time. But it hadn’t been like that. It was the opposite, and for the first time, she truly knew it wasn’t her fault her mother hated her. There’d been something wrong with Ruby, something that was broken long before Marie came along and it wasn’t her fault at all.
“What’s wrong, honey?” Matteo knelt down and wiped at her tears. “Why are you crying?”
“Because I’m in love, Matteo. I was so afraid that it wouldn’t happen, but it’s there. I feel it. So much love. An enormous amount of love that’s chasing so much pain away. It’s amazing.” She cried even harder, but then laughed. “I’m sorry, I’ll explain it later.”
“I think I understand. We’re both kind of in the same boat, aren’t we? Our parents weren’t the best, and that’s part of the reason I agreed to a nanny. We have no clue how to be good parents, other than what the books have said, or what we would have wanted. Instinct is a great teacher, I think. We’ll figure this out. Besides, most people have no clue how to be good parents, even with all the books. I think, as long as we show them that we love them, raise them to be good people, and to be strong, then we’ll do alright, don’t you?”
“I think so. Oh boy. The doctor’s coming back already.” They’d been there for hours, but Marie hadn’t noticed. The time had slipped away between feedings, diaper changes, and taking care of Mariella.
“Can I have her, Mrs. Mazza?” a nurse asked, a smile in place as she took Ella away. “The doctor wants to check her one more time before he agrees they can go home.”
“Maybe we should leave them in for one night?” Marie said, suddenly worried.
“If there’s no need to, it’ll be fine, Mrs. Mazza. I promise,” the nurse said reassuringly.
Marie couldn’t wrap her head around it, that they’d be released so soon, but there it was. Experts knew better than her.
Mariella would stay in for at least one more day, but the babies were healthy and thriving, the doctor decided. If they wanted to take them home, it would be perfectly fine. They’d filled out the paperwork earlier to apply for birth certificates and whatever else it was. It was all a blur to Marie now and she had no clue what she’d signed and what she hadn’t. There’d been a lawyer at one point, to ensure everything was done legally, and then he left. Now, the babies were in their car seats, and ready to go home.
“Mariella, are you sure you’re alright?” Marie paused to ask. The young woman beamed at her.
“I’m fine, Marie. I swear. Don’t worry. Those are all your babies. You’re their mommy and Matteo is their daddy. And I’ll be fine, I have Trina here to keep me company.” She waved at them and went on. “Go home now, enjoy your babies.”
Marie rushed over to her, kissed her cheek, and then walked out with her new baby in a car seat. Matteo had Ella and Marie had Antonio, both tucked under a blanket.
“They’re so tiny, Matteo, are you sure about this? What if they get sick?”
“They won’t, Marie, and tonight they’ll sleep in bassinets in our room. Tomorrow when the nanny comes, they’ll go to the nursery, but they will not be alone for a moment from now on. Well, until we get used to this.”
Marie helped him to buckle the twins into the backseat and put the diaper bag on the floor of the SUV on the driver’s side. “You okay to let me drive?”
“I am. You’ve come along with your driving up here. It’s brave, but then you’re always brave, aren’t you?” He looked tired but happy, pleased even. He had a son and a daughter. And her.
“You know, I was terrified my past would come back to haunt me, would rule my life when they came along, but I don’t feel like that anymore. I make my present, I make the future, and what happens from now on is up to us, isn’t it?”
“It is, Marie, but you know that now. We’re in this together and our babies, our lives, are ours to guide. We might get knocked back by life or something else, but I know one thing: they will not end up with a woman like Celeste, and you and I will love them into being two incredible people.”
Celeste. She’d disappeared in Tibet and nobody had heard from her since. That was probably the most sensible thing that woman ever did. “And they won’t know a woman like my mother. Thank fuck.”
“Now, Marie. The babies can hear you,” Matteo chided in jest.
“We’re going to have to watch that now, aren’t we?”
“We are, but you know something that’s really, really great about surrogacy?” he asked before she pulled into their driveway and stopped the car. “We don’t have to wait six weeks to have sex.”
“Fucking hell, Matteo, you’re incorrigible.” But she grinned. She grinned so wide. Her medicine was working, she was on birth control, and she rarely, if ever, had a tremor now. She had a good few years, at least, so she was looking forward to the future. A future with a husband that still wanted her like he’d only just met her. He loved her completely, and now, they had their babies. It was more than she could have asked for. But it was what she deserved, she decided as they took the babies up to their nursery and settled in with them. She and Matteo deserved this happiness, together.
The End
Also By Summer Cooper
Read Summer’s sexiest and most popular romance books.
DARK DESIRES SERIES
Dark Desire
Dark Rules
Dark Secret
Dark Time
Dark Truth
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A sexy romantic comedy
Somebody To Love
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A 5-book billionaire romance box set
Filthy Rich
Summer’s other box sets include:
Too Much To Love
Down Right Dirty
Mafia’s Obsession
A hot mafia romance series
Mafia’s Dirty Secret
Mafia’s Fake Bride